Category: Pseudoscience

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How Long Will It Take?

With the right wing loonies going all in against all vaccinations, how long will it take for the population of their followers to shrink to the point that they are no longer a concern?

Clearly it won’t happen in the next decade because of other medical interventions preventing so much serious disease and death. So their strategy of going all in on the insanity will likely help keep their base together for the next few presidential election cycles.

However, eventually too many people will have seen too much needless suffering and death among Republican and independent Trumpist’s families that they’ll stop following the insane advice and also stop voting for those who want to encourage their suffering & death for power and profit.

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About the Lab Leak Hypothesis

UPDATE June 10th 2021, as I find new articles they’re included in the list below.

Science reporting has always been atrocious. The facts and basics of how science works are more often wrong than right as presented in the media. Reporting on the origins of Covid-19 is no different. Two of the biggest errors that journalists keep making during the pandemic are, confusing possibility with probability, and giving too much weight to hypothesis from non-experts like Nicholas Wade.

Here’s a few of articles from actual scientists which include lots of information from other scientists who have even more actual subject matter expertise.

Source: Sandwalk: Real scientists discuss the lab leak conspiracy theory

Source: The Origins of SARS-CoV-2 | Science-Based Medicine

Source: The origin of SARS-CoV-2, revisited | Science-Based Medicine

Source: Sandwalk: Let’s analyze the Newsweek lab leak conspiracy theory article

Source: SARS‐CoV‐2, Covid‐19, and the debunking of conspiracy theories – Hakim – – Reviews in Medical Virology – Wiley Online Library

Source: The COVID Lab-Leak Hypothesis: What Scientists Do and Do Not know – Scientific American

Source: CGGCGG: The latest new-old wrinkle in the COVID-19 “lab leak” conspiracy theory – RESPECTFUL INSOLENCE

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Looks Like Birx is trying to assure her place in hell for helping cause more death and suffering

I thought her mask fashion show instead of a science based briefing and failure to halt Trump’s drink bleach idea were bad, now this.

Source: Former Trump adviser joins company that makes hazardous air cleaners | Ars Technica

Reading her biography it seems to me she’s one of those people who got the degree but really only did good administration work not good science based medicine.

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A Death Absolutely Caused by an Irresponsible & Ignorant US President

An Arizona man has died and his wife is in a critical condition after both ingested chloroquine phosphate in an apparent effort to stave off Covid-19.

President Donald Trump has touted the medication form of chloroquine as a possible treatment for the virus.

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Shortly after ingestion, the couple fell ill, said Arizona-based hospital system Banner Health. The couple were both in their 60s. The woman told NBC News she had seen a televised briefing in which Mr Trump discussed the potential benefits of chloroquine as a treatment Covid-19.

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“We saw his press conference. It was on a lot, actually,” she said. “Trump kept saying it was basically pretty much a cure.” “We were afraid of getting sick,” she told NBC.

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They mixed a small amount of the substance with liquid to drink. Within 20 minutes, both fell ill. “I started vomiting,” she said. “My husband started developing respiratory problems.” Her husband could not be revived in hospital and she remains in critical care.

Source: Coronavirus: Man dies taking fish tank cleaner as virus drug – BBC News

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Pay Attention to Dr. Gorski and Other Science Based Doctors If You Want the Best Chance of Surviving This Pandemic

As I’ve pointed out before, the entire saga shows that, when push comes to shove and a crisis hits, physicians’ dedication to science- and evidence-based medicine is disturbingly weak. So it came as no surprise (to me, at least) when the FDA issued a warning on Friday about chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine:

“The Food and Drug Administration warned consumers Friday against taking malaria drugs chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine to treat Covid-19 outside a hospital or formal clinical trial setting after deaths and poisonings were reported. …”

Read the rest here: Hydroxychloroquine and the price of abandoning of science- and evidence-based medicine – Science-Based Medicine

One thing is very clear, Dr. Didier Raoult, and David L Brown M.D. should have their licenses to practice medicine revoked, like what happened to former doctor Andrew Wakefield.

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Dew Point Idiots

I keep encountering idiots who claim some particular dew point temperature is always comfortable. This is so absurd that anyone who says it has absolutely no understanding of the word comfortable or what dew point is.

Dew point is literally the temperature at which dew will form if the current air mass is cooled to that temperature. It also corresponds to 100% RH. This of course means that if the dew point is 10°C (50°F) and the temperature is 10°C (50°F) then the %RH is 100% and water is condensing out of the air and dripping down everything that’s at or below the air temperature.

So if you ever encounter somebody who claims that some dew point temperature is always comfortable ask them, Do you really think that dripping wet 100%RH is comfortable.

If you want to judge comfort go for relative humidity where above 80% feels yucky damp and below 30% feels horribly dry (cracked skin and static electricity problems)

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Sesame Street Gone Very Badly Wrong

It makes me very sad to see that Sesame Street has fallen under the spell of the wealthy, dangerous to children and public health, pseudo-science organization Autism Speaks. Using the muppets to promote dangerous quackery is horrible.

Learn more about this issues from Rebecca,

Source: Sesame Street Partners with Anti-vaccine Organization Autism Speaks – Skepchick

or these other news sources.

Sesame Street Chooses Wrong Narrative on Autism and Loses a Key Relationship

Sesame Street’s autistic muppet, Julia, was a huge success—why some of her developers are now cutting ties

A PROMINENT AUTISM GROUP HAS CUT TIES WITH ‘SESAME STREET’ OVER NEW PSAS FEATURING AUTISTIC MUPPET

Why An Autism Group Is Breaking Up With ‘Sesame Street’

‘Sesame Street’ Under Fire For PSAs About Autism That Add ‘Further Stigma’

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Quack Miranda Warning

In case you aren’t aware, the Quack Miranda Warning takes the form of:

These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. This product is not intended to treat, cure or prevent any disease.

This statement is required on health products when the manufacturer and seller either are unable or unwilling to show the product is useful the way normal health products show their usefulness. It provides the manufacturer/seller some immunity from legal liability. So to protect your health and/or prevent wasting money on useless products all you have to do is avoid buying any product that bears this warning. Be aware that, like all fine print meant to protect undeserved profits, this warning will be in a tiny font in the most obscure location of a page.

It used to be that you’d only see this warning on diet pills, weird vitamins and other things you’d ingest. This warning has worked so well at limiting liability that pretty much all useless products relating to health in any way shape or form now include the warning. Case in point, xZubi, the warning is in the smallest font at the bottom of the home page.

I find the easiest way to check for the warning is to search any suspect page for the phrase “evaluated by the FDA” (Firefox & Internet Explorer, press Control+F to search a page) .  I hope this information helps you avoid wasting money or damaging your health, Happy New Year 2011.